When Love Returns
by angel gurl
Summary: What happens while Max is on the run? (sequel to Long Lost Sister, New Found Love) ML fic!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One: On the run  
  
Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own Max, Logan, Zach, Jondy or anyone associated with Dark angel. But I own Alex, so take her and die :-)  
  
Spoilers: Minor ones for all up to 'Hit A Sista Back'. And let's pretend that Max's transfusion cured Logan with no side effects, ok? Also, nothing after HASB happened :-)  
  
Author's Notes: OH YEAH!! I FINALLY got the sequel to Long Lost Sister, New Found Love out!! I suggest you read Long Lost Sister first, because it might be a bit confusing.  
Thanks to my awesome beta-readers, lareina_Selena and Preciousjax, without them, this would've been as confusing as watching a movie in Russian without subtitles.  
  
****  
  
Max curled into a ball by the window and watched the trees fly by. They had left Seattle a few hours ago and were heading southeast. As tired as she was after her and Logan's night, she couldn't bring herself to go to sleep. She went over every detail of their night together carefully and tucked those wonderful memories away in her head.  
  
Jondy touched Max's arm, " Max, are you ok?"  
  
Max gave a small smile, " I'm fine."  
  
" Tired?"  
  
" A bit."  
  
" Didn't get much sleep, huh?" Jondy said knowingly.  
  
Max blushed and said nothing.  
  
Jondy patted her lap, " Lie down and get some rest."  
  
" Thanks Jondy," Max murmured, putting her head in her sister's lap.  
  
" No problem sweetie," Jondy replied, stroking Max's hair.  
  
" Logan used to do that a lot," Max said suddenly, in response to Jondy stroking her hair.  
  
" Really?"  
  
" Yeah. We read Romeo and Juliet all the time. We'd be sitting on the couch, and I'd lie down and he'd stroke my hair. Once I moved in with him, I had stopped going to Crash as often and we'd just hang out together at home," Max said with a little smile on her face, remembering the times she and Logan shared.  
  
" Yeah, and before they moved in together, Max was wild, a true hell's angel," Alex chimed in. " Moving in with Logan has mellowed her considerably."  
  
Max laughed, " Yeah, I guess I have mellowed out a bit. Logan and I balance each other off so well. He loves me even though he knows what I've done in the past and who I am."  
  
" And if you look on her left hand, you'll see just how much he loves her," Alex suggested, twisting her body around to look Jondy in the face.  
  
Jondy looked on Max's left hand and squealed, " He asked you to marry him!!"  
  
Max smiled happily, " Yeah."  
  
" You're marrying him?" Zach asked, his knuckles turning white due to clutching the steering wheel so hard.  
  
" Yup! When we get back, we're going to get married."  
  
" That's so great!" Jondy exclaimed, before Zach could say anything. " Tell me EXACTLY how he proposed."  
  
Max had a dreamy sort of smile on her face. " He put on Babyface's 'Every time I close my eyes' and told me that I was his sole reason for waking up every morning. He told me that before me, his life was black and white and I brought the color and liveliness into it. And that he never knew what love was before me and he'd be lost without me. Then he asked me to marry him."  
  
" That's so sweet!" Jondy sighed. " I wish I could get a someone as romantic as him for myself."  
  
****  
  
" Hey man," Bling said, walking into the apartment. Even though Logan no longer needed physical therapy, Bling still dropped by once in a while to chat with 2 of his best friends.  
  
" Hey," Logan said, still staring out the window.  
  
" Where's Max?" Bling asked, pouring himself a glass of water.  
  
" On the run," Logan answered moodily. " Lydecker's in town." //Everything had been absolutely perfect for 6 months. It would figure that bastard would interrupt what Max and I have//   
  
" What?" Bling almost dropped his glass in shock. " She's on the run?"  
  
Logan nodded, " A lot has happened in 2 days."  
  
" Why didn't you call me?" Bling questioned, walking to his friend's side. " I would've liked to say goodbye to Max. When's she coming back?" Bling asked, concerned about Max's well being.  
  
" Sorry I didn't phone you. Things were just so chaotic. I don't know when she'll be back. You can phone her if you like," Logan added. " I gave her a scrambled cell. I'm gonna be phoning her in an hour or two, if you want to stick around."  
  
" Yeah. Sure," Bling said. " How long have you been standing there?"  
  
Logan shrugged, " Lost track of time. Since she left."  
  
" And when was that?"  
  
" 3 in the morning."  
  
Bling looked down at his watch and saw that it had been a little bit more than 4 hours since Max had left and sighed. " And I take it I'll be guessing correctly in saying you two didn't sleep during the night?"  
  
" You guessed correctly."  
  
" So who informed you guys Lydecker was in town?"  
  
" Zach. He came back to Seattle," Logan said, sitting down. " Along with Jondy, Max's sister."  
  
" She must have been psyched to see her again after so long," Bling said, sitting down next to Logan.  
  
" Yeah." There were a few moments of silence, and then Logan said, " I proposed to Max last night."  
  
" Are you serious?" Bling asked in surprise. " She said yes?"  
  
Logan smiled for the first time since Bling arrived. " Yeah. She said yes. Will you be my best man?"  
  
" Are you serious?" Bling repeated again, getting more surprised by the second.  
  
" Yeah. You're my best friend. Didn't you know that?"  
  
" Not with the hard time you always gave me with the PT," Bling joked. " Now, as my first act as your best man and best friend, you are going to go to sleep."  
  
****  
  
" So Zach, where exactly are we going?" Alex asked, holding the map out in front of her.  
  
" Our destination will be Ottawa," Zach answered. " So I was thinking we drive through Idaho, Utah, Colorado, Nebraska, Iowa and Minnesota and then quietly slip into Ontario."  
  
" Wait a second, I figured we'd probably be going to Edmonton," Max interrupted.  
  
Zach shook his head, " We want to get farther away than that. It's too close to Seattle for us to be safe from Lydecker."  
  
" Ok, Zach, first things first, how long will that trip take?" Jondy asked. Then without waiting for an answer, she said, " It'll probably take 2 weeks! We don't have that kind of time!"  
  
" It'll take less than a week, if we drive 24 hours a day," Zach replied. " I'll drive as much as I can, but Max and Jondy, you'll probably have to take over after a day or two."   
  
" I wouldn't trust Max to drive anything other than her baby," Alex snorted, " And not even her motorcycle right now, not when she's apart from my dearly beloved big brother."  
  
Max playfully smacked Alex lightly upside the head. " Ow!" Alex exclaimed.  
  
" Not funny," Max said, referring to her comment.  
  
Alex shrugged, " I thought it was."  
  
" Stop it you two," Jondy said lightly. " Zach, when are we going to stop?"  
  
" Why?"  
  
" Well, a girl's gotta pee," Jondy said, rolling her eyes. " And with this Manticore metabolism, I gotta eat and I know Max does too. After all, who wouldn't after a night like hers," Jondy grinned at Max.  
  
" Ok, Jondy, enough of the sex jokes, aiight?" Alex said. " It's VERY uncomfortable for me, knowing that it's my brother she's screwing. I've endured their perfect wonderland for 6 months now, I don't need to hear about it every damn second of the day. Especially now."  
  
" Sorry," Jondy grinned sheepishly. " I forgot that you guys were siblings."  
  
" An easy mistake," Alex smiled back. She and Jondy had never been that close, but for the sake of this 'trip' running smoothly, they were getting along better than usual.  
  
" Zach, not that I'm complaining, but why aren't you splitting us up? I thought for sure that would be the first thing you'd do," Jondy spoke up.  
  
" Because I know for sure that Max would go back to Seattle at once if she thought we were splitting up. The only reason she came is to spend some time with us," Zach replied.  
  
" Thanks Zach," Max said quietly.  
  
Zach glanced at her in the rearview mirror, " It's my duty, Max, to keep you all safe."   
  
****  
  
Logan shot up from the couch suddenly and looked over at the clock on the wall. " Shit," he said to himself. It was already 9:30. " Max is going to have my head for not phoning her earlier!" He grabbed the phone and caught sight of a note.   
  
Logan,  
I had to leave. New patient coming in today. I'll stop by later.  
Bling  
  
//Not that I don't love Bling like a brother, but it'll be nice to be able to talk to Max with no one around// Logan thought as he dialed the phone number.  
  
****  
  
Max's cell phone rang and she said under her breath, " Yes! Logan!"  
  
" What the hell is going on?" Zach exclaimed. " Max, why do you have a cell phone?"  
  
" Because Logan gave it to her so they could stay in touch," Alex said calmly, trying to distract Zach.  
  
" Max, don't answer it yet!" Zach ordered, " We need to talk."  
  
" About what? It's a scrambled cell, totally untraceable. What are you so worked up about?" Max fidgeted, dying to press the button that would connect her with Logan's voice. Just the mere thought of hearing Logan's voice was making her even more eager to end this dispute with Zach.  
  
" WHY do you have a cell phone?" Zach asked.  
  
" Zach, just shut up and let Max talk to Logan right now," Alex snapped, tired of Zach's commander's ways. " We can continue this later."  
  
Zach shut his mouth abruptly; clenching the steering wheel as if he was twisting someone's neck and Alex knew they'd have a LONG fight about the cell phone later.  
  
" Hello?" Max asked, even though she knew it would be Logan.  
  
" Hey gorgeous," Logan grinned, even though he knew Max couldn't see it.  
  
" Hey," she smiled to herself, turning herself towards the window, with her back to Jondy and everyone else. " I missed you," she said quietly.  
  
" I missed you too," he chuckled.  
  
" Sitting in a car going only 50 miles an hour is boring," Max pouted.  
  
" Let me guess: you're wishing you took your baby and you're pouting right now."  
  
" How did you know?" Max asked in surprise.  
  
" Because, my dear, we've been seeing each other 24/7 for nearly 3 months and I know you so damn well."  
  
" Figures. You're a very observant man," Max giggled. " You know, speaking of my baby-"  
  
" Yes, I know, don't touch her, blah, blah, blah."  
  
" Eah!" Max imitated a buzzer. " Wrong answer. Actually, I was going to say the exact opposite. Take her out for a spin once a while, will you? I don't want her engine to rot away while I'm gone."  
  
" Really?" Logan asked in surprise.  
  
" Really," Max laughed. " It's not like I'm worried you'll crash her, after all, you've had an awesome teacher," she said lightly.  
  
" Thanks Max. Means a lot to me that you trust me enough to ride the pride and joy of your life."  
  
" But we both know that I like to ride something even more than my baby," Max said mischievously.  
  
" Oh my virgin ears!" Alex exclaimed sarcastically, covering her ears.  
  
Logan laughed, " Was that Alex I heard?"  
  
Max grinned, " Yup."  
  
" Tell her she wouldn't think that was so bad if she's heard our dirty talk."  
  
Max repeated what Logan said and a second later, Logan heard Alex shout, " LOGAN!!"  
  
" Give Alex the phone," Logan laughed.  
  
" He wants to talk to you," Max grinned, trying to hold back her laughter.  
  
" You're a sick and twisted man and I'm ashamed to call you my brother," Alex said to Logan once she got the phone.  
  
" But you love me anyways."  
  
" Too bad I do. Isn't it kinda weird that no matter what happens, you still love your family?"  
  
" Congratulations, you're starting to get smart."  
  
" You do know that I can kick your ass right?" Alex grinned, knowing full well that no matter what her brother did, she could never beat him up. He had cared for her when their parents died, provided unconditional love and support and had been the person she leaned on the most throughout her childhood and teenage years.  
  
" Of course I do. But like Max, I know you never would. Now can you put Max back on?"  
  
" Sure," Alex said, " Bye bro."  
  
" Talk to you later Lexie."  
  
Alex handed the phone back to Max, " Your knight in shining armor."  
  
Max made a face at her and resumed talking to Logan.  
  
Alex sighed and leaned back into her seat. She wanted so desperately to talk to Brandon right now. He had a cell phone, but knowing him, he probably forgot to bring it with him to work. She had lost count on all the times she had called him and there had been no answer on his cell. Once, he had even stood her up on a date. Alex couldn't reach him on his cell phone, so she ended up leaving a message on his answering machine, yelling at him about what an inconsiderate idiot he was. Turns out that his grandmother had a heart attack and he didn't have enough time to phone her before rushing to the hospital. To this day, she was still apologizing to him about it.  
  
****  
  
" Zach, how many more friggin' hours till we get to the damn border?" Alex asked, exasperated at how long this was taking.  
  
" A couple more hours," Zach replied. The girls had finally talked him into driving through Idaho and Montana and into Saskatchewan instead of going southeast then back north. They'd sneak over the border into Saskatchewan and go through Manitoba and into Ontario.  
  
" Zach, pull over," Jondy said when she saw Zach's eyelids starting to droop.  
  
" Why?" he asked, stifling a yawn.  
  
" You're tired. You've been driving for over 25 hours straight."  
  
" Just because I'm slightly tired doesn't mean we gotta stop. I can take it for a few more hours."  
  
" Think with your brain instead of your testosterone," Jondy snapped. " I don't need much sleep, I'll drive, you and Alex sleep."  
  
Zach reluctantly pulled over and he and Alex moved to the backseat. " Are you sure you know the way?" Zach asked.  
  
" Yes," Jondy said as she and Max put on their seat belts. " We know the way. Zach, what kind of C.O would you be if you didn't at least make us memorize numerous maps?"  
  
Alex laughed, " You did go a little overboard there Zach."  
  
" Well it's getting to be pretty useful now, isn't it?"  
  
****  
  
" Oh shit," Jondy whispered. They were finally close to the Canadian border, after 5 more hours of driving. " Max, wake up."  
  
" What? What is it?" Max asked, waking up suddenly.  
  
" It's Lydecker. He's got his men lined up at the border."  
  
****  
  
A/N: What do you think? I'm so happy I finally got this story out!! Please read and review!!  



	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two: Shoot Out  
  
Disclaimer: I'm too lazy to put it in, so… for the disclaimer, look in the first chapter.  
  
Spoilers: Minor ones for all up to 'Hit A Sista Back'. And let's pretend that Max's transfusion cured Logan with no side effects, ok? Also, nothing after HASB happened :-)  
  
Author's Notes: Thanks to ALL the reviewers!! You guys are fantastic! I'm eternally sorry it took me so long to get this chapter out!! I'll try to get the next chapter out as soon as possible. By the way, I know Zach's spelling is really 'Zack', but I've gotten too used to spelling it 'Zach' and the 2 of them are the same name, so what's the point in changing it?  
Thanks a bunch to my awesome beta readers, lareina_Selena and PreciousJax, cuz without their wonderful beta-ing expertise, this would just be a bunch of meaningless words:-)  
  
****  
  
" Are you sure?" Max asked worriedly.  
  
Jondy zoomed in to see the badges on their uniforms and said, " I'm positive."  
  
" Shit!" Max exclaimed, her voice instantly waking up Zach and Alex.  
  
" What is it?" Zach asked, instantly alert.  
  
" Lydecker's men are lined up at the damn border," Jondy said, punching the steering wheel. " What do we do?"  
  
" Mother-f***ing shit!!" Zach cursed angrily.  
  
" What do we do Zach?" Jondy repeated, slightly panicked. They had gone for almost 30 hours without anything happening and now they suddenly faced trouble.  
  
" Keep driving." Zach said.  
  
" Max, get on the phone with Logan. Ask for Lydecker's whereabouts," Alex suggested. Zach started to protest, but Alex silenced him with a glare. " Our chances are much better if we know where Lydecker is."  
  
Max phoned Logan and seconds later she was off the phone. " Still in Seattle."  
  
" Good. Let's try to just go straight through," Zach said, " If Lydecker's not there, we got a hellava better chance."  
  
One of the men was walking up to their car and Jondy groaned inwardly. She slowed the car down and rolled down the window. After all, it wouldn't make a good impression if they ran everyone down. " What can I do for you sir?" She asked, plastering a fake smile on her face.  
  
" Restricted area. No one's allowed to pass through except authorized personnel. Turn your car around."  
  
Jondy looked at Zach through the rearview mirror. He gave a slight nod, indicating she should do what the officer told her.  
  
" Sure thing," Jondy said, rolling the window back up.  
  
" What now?" She asked Zach once they were driving away.  
  
" Drive for about a quarter of a mile. We'll get out then and sneak over the border."  
  
Jondy drove to a small country lane that was a bit away from the border.   
  
They jumped out of the car and Zach ordered, " Alex, grab our bags from the back. Think you'll be able to jump over the fence?"  
  
Alex nodded, " Yeah, I can do it."  
  
" We're going to have to whip you into shape after this," Max teased.  
  
" Don't I know it," she muttered.  
  
" Jondy, make sure there are no signs of us ever being here."   
  
" Got it," Jondy nodded, her eyes immediately sweeping over the car for traces of them.  
  
Zach took a rag and began wiping the interior and exterior of the car down quickly, not with the intent of removing their fingerprints, but smearing them. If Lydecker found the car and there were no fingerprints, he'd get suspicious. " Ok, let's go," Zach said as soon as he was done.  
  
They moved quickly and stealthily towards the border fence, but their attempts were in vain. Minutes after they left the car, they were interrupted.  
  
" Hey! You! What are you doing here? This is a restricted area!" Someone called out.  
  
All four heads whipped around and they saw 2 soldiers standing there. The guards' eyes widened when they saw it was Alex, Jondy, Max and Zack.   
  
The second man grabbed his walkie-talkie. " Target is spotted at the border fence. Delta team, send backup."  
  
Not a mere second after he finished alerting the Delta team had Alex knocked them both out. Zach finished up the job by snapping both of their necks. " Is killing them really necessary Zach?" Jondy asked.  
  
" What do you think they'll do after they wake up?" Zach asked. Without waiting for an answer, he answered his own question. " They'll run to Lydecker and let him know we've been spotted. We can't leave any evidence behind."  
  
Max snorted, " Yeah, and 2 dead bodies near the border fence is real inconspicuous Zach." Zach shot Max a glare and she knew better than to argue with him anymore.   
  
The three women started intently at Zach, waiting for their orders and he said, "No way in hell are we going to be able to make it to the border fence before they get here. Fight them."   
  
They nodded, blending into the shadows silently, waiting. Max thought for a second and then reluctantly took the gun out of her bag and slipped it in her inner jacket pocket. //Just as a precaution, I won't use it// she promised herself.   
  
A second later, a group of about 40 soldiers came into view. As soon as they were close enough, the 4 of them jumped forward, letting their training take over as they eliminated as many of the soldiers as possible. This is what they had been trained to be, soldiers, killers, predators. Ironically, in their time of need, they were thankful to have their training, for the purpose of defense, even though they wished Manticore never existed.   
  
" Alex, on your right!" Jondy called out, her voice devoid of any emotion as 2 soldiers barreled at Alex.   
  
Alex quickly jumped up and kicked the men in their chests, knocking the wind out of them. She leaned down, applied pressure at just the right spot on their necks, cutting off their blood circulation to their heads.  
  
Meanwhile, Max and 4 other soldiers were circling each other. //Come on, come on// she shouted at them in her mind //Get over here so I can kick your ass!//  
  
Finally, after what seemed like years to Max, the soldiers got close enough so she could at least disarm them without advancing onto them, which would make them start shooting. She kicked the guns out of their hands and quickly took them apart. " Real soldiers don't do guns," Max said icily, knocking them out with 2 punches each.  
  
Unlike Max, Zach had absolutely no problems with guns. He started shooting his handgun equipped with a silencer into soldiers right and left and before they knew what hit them, the majority of them were dead.   
  
Max grimaced at the sight, still haunted from the sight of seeing Eva dead on the floor by Lydecker's gun. " Did you have to do that, Zack?" Max asked sadly.  
  
Zack shrugged, " Hell lot faster than just snapping their necks. These bastards deserve to suffer before they die," he snarled, disgusted at Lydecker's men.   
  
" Please don't use the gun anymore," Max pleading, never pausing for even a moment, a roundhouse kick disabling yet another guard.   
  
" Fine," he said, tossing the gun aside, against his better judgment; he'd rather take his chances of getting injured than cause Max more pain than she'd already suffered these last few days.  
  
As Jondy finished off 2 soldiers she was fighting solitarily, a third soldier was fumbling to reload his gun, preparing to shoot Jondy.   
  
Time seemed to stand still for Max as the soldier raised the gun, aiming it at Jondy's back. "Jondy, LOOK OUT!!" Max exclaimed desperately, throwing a punch in the soldier she was fighting's face. Max was distracted for a split second, giving the soldier time to connect one solid punch to her jaw. The pain barely registered as Max grabbed his head and twisted it to the side with a sickening crack.  
  
Jondy was too busy fighting the 2 soldiers, who were a surprisingly good match for her, to hear Max's warning.   
  
Without even thinking, Max took out her gun and shot it at the soldier just as he was about to pull the trigger that would kill Jondy. The only thought running through her mind was //I can't let Jondy die the way Eva did//.  
  
The bullet struck the soldier neatly in the back of his neck and the he dropped to the ground.   
  
Max dropped the gun in shock, disgusted with herself that she had used it. She backed up into a tree and collapsed. " I used a gun. I used a gun," Max whimpered over and over.  
  
When the last of the soldiers were finally dead, the other 3 rushed up to Max and Alex put her arm around her. " Max, are you ok?" she asked, ignoring the pain in her shoulder. Max's well-being was the most important thing at this moment, even though Jondy had a fractured wrist and Zach had popped his kneecap.   
  
Max had a glassy, unfocused look in her eyes and Jondy shook her shoulder gently, " Max? Max, can you look at me right now?"  
  
Max slowly looked up at Jondy and said, " I killed him. I used a gun." She started crying, " I used a gun!"  
  
" Max," Zach said in an impatient voice.  
  
Jondy shot Zach a death glare that said 'Shut up or I will personally make sure you will never father any children' and Zach shut his mouth.  
  
" Come on Max, get up," Jondy said in a soft voice.  
  
Max stood up with the help of Jondy, still crying.   
  
Alex took her own cell phone out of her pocket and dialed Logan's phone number. Alex knew she couldn't run to Logan every time something went wrong, but this time, it would really help Max to hear his voice. " Hey Logan?" she said quietly.  
  
" Hey Lexie. How come you're calling me and not Max? Is Max ok?"  
  
" Well, actually… Max isn't ok. She used the gun."  
  
" She used the gun? Why?"  
  
Alex told him the whole story and he whistled, " Intense. Can I talk to Max?"   
  
" Yeah. That's the reason why I called you. I was hoping you could talk to her and try and calm her down. She's pretty hysterical right now."  
  
" That can't be a good thing right now."  
  
" It's not. We still have to jump the border fence."  
  
" Good luck on that. Hand her the phone."  
  
" Aiight."   
  
Alex gave the phone to Max and said, " It's Logan. Talk to him."  
  
Max quickly took the phone and said tearfully, " Logan?"  
  
" Hey baby. You ok?" He asked in a soft voice.  
  
" I used the gun," Max whimpered.   
  
" I know sweetheart. Alex told me. But you had no choice but to use it."  
  
" I could've just ran up to him and disarm him. But I didn't. Logan, I'm a cold-blooded killer," Max cried out.  
  
" No you're not Max, you're NOT a cold-blooded killer."  
  
" You don't love me anymore, do you?"  
  
" I love you just as much as I did before," Logan reassured her. His worry was increasing by the minute. If he had known she'd be this upset about using a gun, he never would've given it to her. He knew that not using guns was a personal rule of hers, but he didn't know she felt this strongly about it.   
  
Zach watched Max as she talked to Logan and couldn't help but feel jealous. When they were young and still back at Manticore, Zach had been the one Max always confided in, the person she trusted with all her heart and soul. But now her heart and soul belonged to Logan Cale and he in turn, had became her lover and confidante. But at this moment, he had no time to reminisce. Max was injured and as her C.O., he had a responsibility to take care of her.   
  
Soon, Max got off the phone with Logan and Zach cleared his throat. He wanted to let her and Alex have it right then and there about the cell phone, but getting over the border and into safe territory was more vital than any cell phone.  
  
" Let's go," Zach said. While Max was talking, Jondy and Alex had tended to their wounds, Zach had painfully popped his kneecap back in and they had unintentionally walked all the way to the border fence. " Jondy, you and Max go first. Alex and I will follow."  
  
****  
  
Logan hung up the phone when he heard the click of Max's phone being disconnected, feeling slightly guilty that he had given her the gun. He had talked to her 3 times already, but he still missed her like crazy. He tried to distract himself with work and thankfully, that had worked, but just barely.   
  
Hours later, Logan got up from his computer and went over to the kitchen for a very much-needed break. He'd been working all day, ever since he got off the phone with Max after their first phone call. He tried to get some sleep and that had backfired. He was too used to falling asleep with her nice and safe in his arms, and knowing she was in danger right now didn't help at all.  
  
He was just about to pour himself a glass of wine when the doorbell rang. He frowned to himself. " Who the hell could be at my door right now?" he grumbled. " It's after midnight!"  
  
He threw open the door and was about to let the person have it, but his mouth dropped open in surprise when he saw who it was.  
  
" Hey Loogie," she breathed.   
  
****  
  
A/N: I have a way of ending chapters with someone appearing, don't I? Heehee… well, let's hope my betas aren't busy so I can get the next chapter out soon to make up for the delay of this one!! Please read and review :-)   



	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three: Return of the Ex  
  
Bleh… for disclaimer and spoilers, look in first chapter. I'm too damn lazy!!  
  
Author's Notes: Ahh!! I'm so proud of myself, I got this out in *6* days!! It usually takes me more than a week to get a chapter out!! Thanks a whole bunch to my awesome, wonderful, terrific beta-readers, lareina_Selena and PreciousJax!! You guys totally helped me through my writer's block, however minor it was :-)  
  
****  
  
Logan quickly collected his jaw off of the floor. " Val? What the hell are you doing here? It's 1:25 in the morning!!"  
  
Valerie bit her lip. " I know. My… ex-husband and I had a huge fight and we got evicted from the apartment for vandalizing the property. I wouldn't have come here, but I ran out of options. I know that… there was no one in the world that I hurt more."  
  
" You said that last time Val. And look what happened," Logan said bitterly, turning around and walking away from her.  
  
Valerie put her bags down and followed Logan. " I mean it this time. I never ever meant to hurt you the way that I did. Back then, I was reckless and too much in love to see clearly."  
  
Logan sighed and muttered to himself, " I know the feeling."  
  
Valerie stood up close to him and brought her hand up to his shoulder and ran her hand down his chest and abs. " Maybe we could start over again," she said seductively.  
  
Logan took a step away from Valerie, " Val, a lot has changed since you last saw me."  
  
" I don't see it. You're still the same, handsome man I fell in love with," she said coyly.  
  
" Val, I'm engaged."  
  
" Oh," Valerie said, quickly turning uncomfortable. " To who?"  
  
" Max."  
  
Valerie frowned, " But she's so young! What is she, 18?"  
  
Logan visibly stiffened; he had always known Max and his age difference was large, but no one had ever really pointed it out. He said through gritted teeth, " Age doesn't matter as long as we're in love, which we are."  
  
" I guess so," Valerie said. " So, think I can stay for a while?" she pleaded.  
  
Logan sighed and ran a hand through his hair. " How long do you need?"  
  
" A week, tops," Valerie grinned happily.  
  
" Ok," Logan said very reluctantly. " One week. That's it." //Oh dear God, what have I gotten myself into?//Logan wondered to himself. //Max is going to kill me when she finds out//  
  
****  
  
" Thank God we're finally here!!" Max exclaimed, flopping down on one of the beds in the small house they had rented, located in the countryside just outside Ottawa.  
  
" You three girls mind sharing this room?" Zach asked, poking his head in. " It's bigger than the other one and I doubt one of you wants to share with me."  
  
" We're fine Zach. Thanks," Jondy smiled.  
  
Zach exited the room and Max said, " Alex, why don't you phone Brandon? Shouldn't he be home right now?"  
  
" What time would it be there?"  
  
" Around 9 in the morning," Max answered, " Seattle is 3 hours behind us."  
  
" I'll ask Logan to get him to a secure line next time he phones."  
  
" Ok," Max shrugged.  
  
Jondy held up the newspaper. " Better start looking for jobs. Logan's money isn't going to last us very long."  
  
" I am definitely NOT taking a job as a bike messenger," Max snorted, " I don't think I can handle another Normal."  
  
" Bip bip bip, you lazy bums, or you're all fired!" Alex imitated.  
  
Max dissolved into giggles, " That's a pretty good impression of him!"  
  
" Thank you, thank you very much," Alex grinned, now imitating Elvis.  
  
Two pairs of confused eyes stared at Alex, silently asking her to explain.  
  
" Elvis," Alex answered, " Haven't you guys ever heard of him?"  
  
Max and Jondy looked at each other and shook their heads. " No…" Max said slowly. " Are we supposed to?"  
  
" Elvis, the King of Rock and Roll?" Alex asked. When she saw their puzzled looks, she groaned, " Oh my gosh, have you two got a lot to learn!!"  
  
" Well, I don't really care for rock and roll, so whatever," Max said, opening the newspaper up to the classified section.  
  
****  
  
Valerie was still sound asleep in the guestroom. Logan had finally agreed to let her stay, but only for a week. Even though she had played him twice already, he didn't have the heart to turn someone away in their time of need.  
  
Logan went into his office and sighed. //Guess I'm not going to be making Eyes Only broadcasts for a while// he thought as he shut down the all the computers except for his main one. //Besides, Max isn't here to do the legwork//  
  
He picked up the picture of Max that stood beside his computer and chuckled to himself as he thought of that day.  
  
**FLASBACK**  
  
Logan got out of bed quietly and was careful not to wake Max up from her much needed sleep. Max hadn't had a good night's sleep for almost a week and a half and she had exhausted herself the night before from doing legwork for Eyes Only.  
  
After Logan finished making breakfast, he went back to their bedroom to check on Max and was surprised to see her still deeply asleep. He smiled to himself at how peaceful and innocent she looked; her hair fanned out all around her on the pillow like a halo, her long eyelashes brushed her high cheekbones and her luscious lips curled up in a tiny smile, as if she was having a wonderful dream.  
  
Logan made his way noiselessly to the bureau and got his camera. He quickly snapped a picture of Max and lowered the camera, still mesmerized by her sleeping form.  
  
Max finally woke up, having the feeling of someone staring at her. She saw Logan leaning against the bureau at the opposite end of the room and smiled. " Hey," she said sleepily.  
  
" Right back at you," he answered with that sexy little smile of his.  
  
" How come I didn't wake up with you by my side?" Max pouted.  
  
" Because you needed the sleep and today, I didn't."  
  
Max's eyes wandered down and saw the camera in his hands. Her mouth dropped open, " You didn't."  
  
Logan grinned, " I did," he said, raising the camera for effect.  
  
" I'm going to kill you!" Max cried out in shock. " Couldn't you have at least waited till I brushed my hair to take a picture of me??" She complained.  
  
" Aww, then what's the fun in that?" Logan teased, sitting down on the edge of the bed.  
  
" Give me the camera," Max demanded, trying unsuccessfully to grab the camera from him.  
  
" No way!" Logan exclaimed. " Believe me, you looked beautiful."  
  
" I did not," Max pouted.  
  
" You did too," Logan said, silencing her with a soft kiss. " Now get out of bed, I made you breakfast."  
  
"I love a man that can cook," Max grinned, scrambling out of bed.  
  
" My uncle Jonas can cook. Do you love him?" Logan pouted, pretending to be hurt.  
  
Max wrapped her arms around Logan. " The only man I love has these really amazing eyes, a scruffy little beard, this great smile that makes me melt, little glasses that make him look all sexy and intellectual and is an amazing kisser," she tugged gently on Logan's lower lip playfully for effect.  
  
" Must be one hell of a guy," Logan grinned, wrapping his own arms around his beloved.  
  
" Oh, he is," Max giggled and kissed him.  
  
" Let's forget about breakfast," Logan murmured when they broke apart from their kiss.  
  
" Never, *ever* say those words to me," Max said, slapping his chest lightly.  
  
" So if you could choose between sex and food, what would you choose?"  
  
" Depends," Max said, leaning closer to his face with a mischievous smile on her face. " We could always combine the two."  
  
Logan grinned and stood up, " I'll get the whipped cream."  
  
" I'll get the strawberries."  
  
**END FLASHBACK**  
  
" Hey, you were never much of a computer guy back when we were married," Logan heard Valerie's voice, " even for your little articles, you'd always rather working with a pen and paper. I was starting to wonder if you were Amish or something."  
  
Logan whipped his head in the direction of the door and said, " Oh, hey. You're up."  
  
Valerie nodded, " Yup. So what's with the computers?"  
  
" Oh, nothing important," Logan said, quickly getting up from his seat and ushered Valerie out of the door. He locked his office and walked briskly into the kitchen.  
  
" Are you planning on looking for an apartment today?" Logan asked.  
  
" I can't really look for an apartment until I find a job," Valerie said.   
  
" Have you ever even worked before?" Logan wondered.  
  
Valerie laughed, " No. After college, I moved in with you. Then after we divorced, I moved in with Robbie."  
  
" Ah. Robbie," Logan said, recalling the pain he had felt when he found out Val had cheated on him.  
  
" He's in the past Logan," Valerie said quietly, touching his arm. " If it's ok with you, I'd like for us to try and become friends. I truly am sorry about the way I hurt you."  
  
Logan gave Valerie a sad smile. " I know you are."  
  
" So you wanna give the friendship thing a try?"  
  
" Yeah," Logan said after hesitation. " I'd like that."  
  
Valerie gave a full-blown grin and gave him a friendly hug. " Thank you."  
  
Logan quickly broke apart from her hug " I'm not really comfortable with hugging you right now," he said bluntly.  
  
Valerie bit her lip, " It's ok. I guess I understand." She started at Logan for a few moments and then asked, " Oh my gosh, I can't believe I didn't notice it earlier. How'd you get out of the wheelchair?"  
  
" Long story," Logan said with a wave of his hand, dismissing the issue.  
  
The phone rang and Logan said, " Excuse me."  
  
" I'll make breakfast," Valerie called out as Logan picked up the phone.  
  
" Hello?"   
  
" Hey hun."  
  
Logan smiled happily, " Hey Max."  
  
" Guess what? Actually it's two 'guess what's."  
  
" What's the first one?"  
  
" I found a job."  
  
****  
  
" You found a job? That's great!" Max heard Logan say to her. Jondy, Alex and Zach were already out at their jobs. It was really quite fortunate that they had all found jobs on such short notice.   
  
" Where are you working?"  
  
" I start work tomorrow at Starbucks."  
  
Logan laughed, " It figures, you're such a coffee fanatic."  
  
" A coffee fanatic you love," Max said playfully.  
  
" Very, very much too," Logan agreed. " What's the second 'guess what'?" He asked, moving into his bedroom for privacy.  
  
" I really, really, really miss you. I haven't slept at all since I left. And that's not really good because we -ahem- used up a lot of energy our last night together," Max grinned. " I think I've gotten too used to falling asleep in your arms."  
  
" Really? Because I've gotten too used to falling asleep with you in my arms. I only took one short nap the morning after you left."  
  
Max frowned, even though Logan couldn't see it. " You should get some rest. It's been," she checked her watch, " more than 2 days! Logan, your body can't handle it."  
  
" I know I know," Logan sighed, " It's just hard without you here."  
  
" I wish you could've came with me," Max said quietly.  
  
" Me too. But someone's gotta look out for the downtrodden, right? Blah blah woof woof?"  
  
Max laughed, " Right."  
  
****  
  
Valerie poked her head in the doorway of Logan's room and said, " Logan, you're out of eggs. What would you like instead?"  
  
" Logan? Who's that?" Max asked, hearing a woman's voice.  
  
****  
  
A/N: Heehee, next chapter should be fun to write!! Please read and review, it's disturbing how excited I get when I see I get a review ;-)  



	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four: Heart to Heart  
  
I guess you can consider me a lazy person… for disclaimer and spoilers, check chapter one!!  
  
Author's Notes: Wow, I'm sorry I made you guys wait more than a month for this!!! To make a long story short, I accidentally deleted this entire frigging chapter. I would've had it up before the fanfiction.net outage, but well, I'm an idiot :-)  
As always, thanks a whole lot to my betas lareina_Selena and PreciousJax!  
Oh yeah, before I forget: Britney Spears haters rejoice, Britney Spears lovers… well, too bad.  
  
****  
  
" Logan?" Max asked impatiently, " Is that a woman in *our* apartment?"  
  
" Actually, there is, Val is-"  
  
" Logan? What would you like instead?" Valerie repeated.  
  
Logan covered the mouthpiece with his hand and said, " Whatever's good. Could you shut the door on your way out?"  
  
" Sure," Valerie said as she shut the door.  
  
" Logan, you better start explaining," Max said in a deathly quiet tone that Logan knew meant 'this better be good or I WILL kick your ass'. //I've been out of the house for what, 2 DAYS and he already has a fucking woman there?//'Relax Max, you know he loves you' her other inner voice reasoned with her.//But he has a fucking woman there!// 'You can trust Logan! You know you can!' Her inner voices continued arguing back and forth.  
  
" Val's here. She needed a place to stay."  
  
Max coughed; she couldn't have heard accurately. " As in your lying, cheating ex-wife Valerie?" Max asked, her voice still a bit too quiet for Logan's liking.  
  
" Yeah…" Logan said slowly, confused as to why Max was angry.   
  
" What the HELL is she doing there?" Max practically yelled.  
  
Logan jumped up a little, startled by Max's sudden increase of volume. " I told you. She needed a place to stay."   
  
" So? Doesn't she have any friends or family members?"  
  
" She ran out of options. What are you so worked up about?"  
  
Max raised an eyebrow. " What I am so worked up about? In what way do you want the reasons? By alphabetical order or level of intensity? Logan, she is your EX-WIFE. A gold-digging bitch. A cheater. A liar. How can you forgive her?"  
  
" What makes you think I've forgiven her? I'm just providing her a place to stay. That's it."  
  
" Besides needing a place to stay, what else did she want?  
  
" I don't know… she said she wanted to become friends again."  
  
" More like wanting to get in your pants," Max snorted, " You can't tell me she hasn't put the moves on you since she arrived."  
  
" Well…" Logan hesitated, " she did say she wanted to 'start things over'. But that was before I told her I was engaged to you."  
  
" Logan, I don't trust her. She's played you so many times," Max said, trying to sound reasonable.  
  
" Don't I know it," Logan scoffed.  
  
" I just don't see how you can even face her after all that."  
  
" Well I fell in love with you didn't I? I'm actually thankful to Val for breaking up our marriage. If she hadn't, I would still be in a superficial relationship instead of this wonderful one I'm in right now."  
  
Max smiled softly, " Really?"  
  
" Really. So is it ok?"  
  
" Of course it's not. But I trust you."  
  
" Thank you Max."  
  
" Yeah, yeah, yeah," Max rolled her eyes. " I don't want to hear about that anymore."  
  
" Done," Logan grinned.  
  
" Alex was wondering if you could get Brandon to a secure line so she could talk to him."  
  
" No problem," Logan answered, " What's a good time for you guys?"  
  
" Um… 3 o'clock Seattle time would be good."   
  
" And I'm guessing you don't have his work number, so I'm going to have to search for it?"  
  
" That's where you're wrong. It's 63894521799864."  
  
" How did you know that?" Logan asked, amazed.  
  
" Alex's phone book. It's right beside me," Max grinned.  
  
****  
  
" Honey, I'm home!" Alex called out sarcastically. She walked into the living room where she found Max curled up hugging her knees to herself.  
  
" Hey Alex," Max said quietly.  
  
" Hey," Alex said, plopping down beside her sister. " You ok?"  
  
Max shook her head, " Not really. Valerie's back and she's staying at Logan's."  
  
" Excuse me?"   
  
Max nodded, " You heard me."  
  
" Is Logan an idiot or just plain ass dense?" Alex exploded, jumping up and started pacing around the room. She faced Max and put her hands on her hips, " What's the matter with him, letting his ex-wife stay with him?"   
  
" He told me that she ran out of options on where to stay. Alex, I don't trust her."  
  
" Neither do I."  
  
" What's your reason?" Max asked curiously  
  
" She's a BITCH! She'd been playing Logan ever since they started going out."  
  
Max's mouth dropped open in surprise, " Ever since they started going out?"  
  
Alex dropped back onto the couch next to Max. " Yeah. I found out one night when I was at a club with my friends. She was there making out with this guy like there was no tomorrow. I didn't think too much about it, I mean, they had only started going out, I didn't think they'd ever get too serious. Well, obviously, I was wrong. After they got married, I realized that Val was still seeing other people behind Logan's back. By then, it was too late to let Logan know, he was head over heels in love with her. So I tried to take matters in my own hands. I told Val to break off all her little affairs or else I'd tell Logan myself. She threatened me and said that if I told Logan, she would personally make sure I would be kicked out of his place and never have contact with him again. I was really close to Logan at that point and came to depend on him a lot, so I kept my mouth shut. When Val went to visit her mom in New York, I finally got the guts to tell Logan everything. We came up with a plan and caught her in the act. That's what broke up their marriage."  
  
" I can't imagine anyone cheating on Logan," Max said quietly, " He's perfect."  
  
" Yeah, well, for a brother he's not that bad," Alex grinned.  
  
" You miss him, don't you?"  
  
Alex nodded, " Yeah. I got my brother back after 2 years and now I've lost him again."  
  
" You haven't lost him," Max protested, " He's still your big brother."  
  
Alex gave a sad smile, " Yeah, he is. But now he's got you Max. He doesn't need me anymore."  
  
Max was startled by Alex's statement. How could she possibly feel this way? Yes, she was Logan's fiancé and his confidante, but Alex is Logan's *sister*. One day, Logan could fall out of love with her, but Alex would forever be his little sister.  
  
" Alex, how can you feel that way?" Max asked, " You're his *sister*. Nothing could ever possibly break the bond between two siblings. You two are family. Logan and I could break up one day and may never speak or hear from each other again, but you two will forever be a part of each other's lives." Max grinned, " Just like how no matter how long we're on the outside, Zach will always be an uptight control freak and a pain in the ass older brother."  
  
Alex laughed lightly at that; " You don't know what it feels like Max," Alex said softly. " Logan and I used to be super close, closer than most siblings are. When I came back from Africa, I was so afraid that our relationship had changed that I couldn't bring myself to go and see him. When I finally saw him again, I was so relieved that almost nothing had changed. And then you two started seeing each other and BAM; we started drifting apart. You became his everything. Sometimes I feel like teaming up with Zach to break the two of you up."  
  
Max's mouth dropped open in shock, " Alex!"  
  
" Well it's true! I'm not blaming you or anything, but I never got to see my brother anymore, you two were always together. I love you and everything, but sometimes I just want to be babied by my big brother."  
  
" I'm sorry Alex," Max said, finally seeing Alex's point of view, " I never meant to steal him away from you."  
  
" I don't look at it as you stealing him away," Alex said, wrapping an arm around her big sister, " it's just that I miss being able to spend time with Logan whenever I wanted to."  
  
" Well I promise you, you'll never lose him. I'll make sure of that. In fact, you'll get so sick of him always being around you that you'd want to throw yourself off of a building. Or him. Whichever one comes first."  
  
Alex laughed, " Thanks Max."  
  
" Anything for my baby sister."  
  
There was a moment of silence as the two sisters wrapped themselves up in their own thoughts. Max broke the quietness and asked, " Does Zach really want to break Logan and I up?"  
  
Alex hesitated before saying, " Yeah. He does. Deep down, he probably does realize how happy Logan makes you. But he chooses not to see the positive aspects; he only focuses on the negative parts."  
  
Max sighed and got up, " I don't want to depress myself by thinking about Zach. I'm going for a walk."  
  
" Oh, by the way Alex," Max said as she was about to walk out the door, " Brandon's phoning at 6."  
  
Alex let out a squeal of delight, " Really?"  
  
Max grinned, " Yup. I'll give you two a little phone privacy," she winked and left.  
  
****  
  
" Ok, Brandon, you ready to phone her?" Logan asked.  
  
Brandon nodded, " Yeah, I'm cool. Thanks for letting me use your line."  
  
" Anything for my little sister," Logan answered, " Give me a shout when you're done," he said, dialing the last number.  
  
****  
  
" Alex?" Brandon asked uncertainly when he heard the phone being picked up.  
  
" Brandon!" Alex cried out with joy, thankful no one was home to hear the delight in her voice. One, it was slightly embarrassing she enjoyed hearing her boyfriend's voice so much. Two, Zach would have called it a moment of weakness.  
  
" Hey baby," Brandon smiled to himself, settling down on a couch.  
  
" How are you? How's work? Did you miss me? Are you at Logan's right now?" Alex bombarded him with a million questions.  
  
Brandon laughed; there was the Alex he knew, always the chatterbox. " I'm fine, work sucks, of course I missed you, yes, I'm at Logan's," Brandon said equally fast.  
  
" How's Danny?" Alex asked, referring to Brandon's best friend.  
  
" He's cool. He got this new girlfriend, Katelyn and they're together practically 24/7, lips basically connected at all times and all mushy and lovey-dovey."  
  
Alex laughed, " Sounds like the beginning of our relationship."  
  
" No way. Then our relationship would have been normal. Our relationship was anything but normal."  
  
" You're right," Alex agreed, " All we did was bicker."  
  
** FLASHBACK **  
  
" How can you think that a someone like *Britney Spears* can even COMPARE to a vocalist like Jessica Simpson?" Alex asked Brandon disbelievingly.   
  
Brandon unlocked his front door and ushered Alex in. " Have you SEEN the pictures of Britney Spears when she was our age? Now THAT was hot! Especially that Rolling Stones cover!"  
  
" Jessica was beautiful too! And as I recall, she could actually SING!"  
  
" Believe me, no one comes close to Britney."  
  
" She's close to 40 now!"  
  
" What's your point? She's aged very well."  
  
" Probably all due to plastic surgery," Alex scoffed. " You are such a typical male."  
  
" Am not."  
  
" Are too."  
  
" Am not."  
  
" Are too!" Alex exclaimed, " You're defining a singer's talent by looks and looks alone. Come to think of it, you only tried to go out with me because you thought I was pretty."   
  
" Did not," Brandon objected.  
  
Alex whirled around to face Brandon, " So you don't think I'm pretty?" She raised an eyebrow.  
  
" Of course I do! Sheesh, talking of typical genders, you're a typical female," Brandon rolled his eyes, " Twisting my every word."  
  
Alex turned around and headed to the kitchen, tossing her hair in the process. " I'm making coffee," she announced haughtily.  
  
" What I MEANT was," Brandon said, grabbing Alex's arm before he made her too pissed off. " The reason I was so taken by you was you were a smart-ass. Women I've dated in the past were too meek and quiet. You were strong-minded and I liked that. Your beauty was a bonus, but your mind and smart ass comments were what drew me in."  
  
Alex faced Brandon. " Take back the typical female comment," Alex demanded.  
  
" Take back the typical male comment," Brandon mocked her.  
  
Alex stuck her tongue out at Brandon and turned to walk away.   
  
Brandon laughed and pulled her around. " Ok ok, you win. You're not a typical female."  
  
" That's better," Alex smiled brightly. " But my typical male comment still remains."  
  
Brandon suddenly pulled her into a kiss that left her breathless and longing for more. " Still think I'm a typical male?" He asked in a husky voice.  
  
" Nuh-uh," Alex squeaked out. She pulled him back into a kiss and Brandon muttered in between kisses, " You… still… want… coffee?"  
  
" I'm good," Alex responded, pushing him in the direction of his bedroom.  
  
** END FLASHBACK **  
  
" Alex? You still there?"  
  
Alex shook her head to snap herself out of her memories and she said softly, " Yeah. I'm still here. Just thinking."  
  
" Of me, I hope," Brandon joked.  
  
Alex laughed, " Always the attention seeking one. I was just thinking about that whole Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson thing."  
  
Brandon laughed heartily, " Oh, that was a GOOD night."  
  
Alex giggled, " Yeah, it was."  
  
****  
  
Once Alex and Brandon were finished talking, Logan took the phone from Brandon.  
  
" Hey Lexie."  
  
" Hey Logan!" Alex replied, her voice bubbly.  
  
" You sound happy."  
  
" That's because I am. So how does it feel to be officially hated by the 2 most important girls in your life?"  
  
Logan sighed, " Max told you."  
  
" How could you let *Val* of all people to stay at your place?? Don't you remember what she did to you?"  
  
" Of course I remember. I remember better than anyone else," Logan snapped.  
  
" Then why are you letting her stay there?"  
  
" Well- beca-" after a few more broken replies, Logan sighed, " I don't know. I have no idea why. Maybe because Val and I have a history and I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I turned her down in her time of need."  
  
" You were always too caring for your own good."  
  
Logan laughed, " Yeah, maybe I am."  
  
" I should probably go now. Talk to you later?"  
  
" Of course. Tell Max I miss her."  
  
" Oh, don't tell your SISTER that you miss her then," Alex said sarcastically.  
  
" I miss you Lexie and I wish you'd come home soon," Logan automatically said.  
  
" That's better," Alex smiled, " Bye."  
  
" Bye."  
  
****  
  
A/N: Hey, for once, no cliffhanger! Geez, I feel like these chapters are so uneventful. What do you guys think? I just want to dive head first into the good stuff *rubs hands in anticipation*. Until then, please review!!  



	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five: Home  
  
Disclaimer: Nuh-uh, Dark Angel's not mine! But I own Brandon and Alex, so if you take them, I'm going to have to kill you.  
  
Spoilers: Minor ones for all up to 'Hit A Sista Back'. And let's pretend that Max's transfusion cured Logan with no side effects, ok? Also, nothing after HASB happened :-)  
  
Author's Notes: *ducks to avoid flying objects* Yes, I know I've been absolutely HORRIBLE with updates (more than a month… yikes!). But starting with the next chapter, the chapters are gonna be a bit shorter, so 1) it's easier for my beta's to edit 2) it's easier for me to revise 3) and I'll result in more frequent updates! Geez, I hope you guys haven't forgotten the whole storyline already!!  
Special thanks to lareina_Selena and PreciousJax for a superb beta-ing job!!   
  
****  
  
Max and Jondy walked quietly into their home and Max whispered, " You hear anything?"  
  
Jondy shook her head and Max came to the conclusion that Alex had finished her conversation with Brandon.  
  
" Alex?"   
  
" In here!" Alex called back from the kitchen.  
  
" Hey," Max said. She sniffed the air and grinned. " Thank God one of us can cook."  
  
" It's in the genes," Alex quipped back. " That and living with Logan for so long."  
  
" How did your call with Brandon go?"  
  
" Eah," Alex shrugged.  
  
" That's a stupid answer," Max retorted.  
  
" Well, you deserved a stupid answer to a stupid question!" she exclaimed. " Of course it went well, what else did you think?"   
  
" Ok, fine, I deserved that," Max rolled her eyes. " You talk to Logan?"  
  
" Another stupid question," Alex said, pointing her knife at Max. Max took a step back and Alex looked down at her hand, " Oh, sorry," she apologized, putting the knife down.  
  
" Why is it so stupid for me to ask if you talked to Logan?"  
  
" Because we both know that my big brother is overly protective." Alex stated matter-of-factly.   
  
" Very true," Max nodded.   
  
" Said he misses you," Alex said. She stopped dicing the vegetables for a second to check Max's reaction.  
  
Max broke out in a full-blown smile but didn't say anything.  
  
" Phone him right now," Alex suggested, seeing how happy she was just to hear that Logan missed her. " Dinner's not going to be ready for at least another half hour."  
  
Max shook her head. " Nah, it's ok. He and Bling are probably out drinking or something."  
  
Jondy gave a mock look of surprise. " Max, you're actually agreeing to not phoning Logan?" She put her hand on Max's forehead. " Nope, she doesn't have a fever," she said to Alex. " Who are you and what have you done to my sister?" Jondy demanded.  
  
Max laughed and brushed her hair away from her face. " I just want to give Logan some space."  
  
" Does this have to do with a certain someone who's staying at his place right now?" Alex asked innocently.  
  
Max shot Alex a dirty look and Jondy asked, " What? Who's staying there?"  
  
Max glared at Alex again and said sarcastically, " Thanks a lot sis."  
  
Alex merely flashed her award winning smile and Jondy asked again, " Who's staying there?"  
  
" His ex is staying there for a while," Max answered as calmly as she could.  
  
" And you're ok with it?" Jondy asked incredulously. " I don't think I could ever be that big of a person."  
  
" Of course I'm not ok with it," Max said patiently. " But I trust Logan."  
  
****  
  
~~ 3 weeks later ~~  
  
" Jondy!" Max yelled out. " You ready yet?"  
  
" Yeah Jond!" Zach called out impatiently. " We're all waiting for you!"   
  
Jondy came barreling down the stairs, busy tying up her hair. " Yeah, yeah, yeah," Jondy replied. " I'm ready."  
  
Zach rolled his eyes. " I swear, if we had enough money to get another car, I wouldn't even think of driving you guys to work." They had all agreed not to do anything out of ordinary during their stay in Canada, which basically meant no stealing and no stunts.  
  
" Well we could have taken the bus."  
  
Max snorted. " Speak for yourself. Hell is going to freeze over before I get on that bus. Zach, why won't you let me get a motorcycle while we're here?" Max complained. " That way, you won't have to wait for me and Jondy in the morning." Jondy was now working with Max at Starbucks; she said she preferred the hustle and bustle of it over the quietness at the grocery where she was previously employed.  
  
" I've told you time and time again Max, it'd draw too much attention. Now can we please go?"  
  
They all got into the car and Zach said. " Now, I gotta work late tonight, so you three are going to have to take the bus." Zach smirked at Max through the rearview mirror. " Looks like the people down below are strapping on their skis."  
  
Max groaned, " Ugh, I hate you."  
  
Zach pulled into the Starbucks parking lot 10 minutes later and Max groaned, " Oh God no. Chris is already in."  
  
Jondy put a sympathetic hand on Max's shoulder. " Sorry babe."   
  
" Jesus Christ, that guy never stops trying! You would think he'd get a hint after a knee or two to the groin!"  
  
" Want me to knock some sense into him?" Zach offered.  
  
" It'll draw attention," Max reminded him.  
  
" Play your engagement ring card," Alex suggested.  
  
Max wrinkled her nose. " I don't want to wear it to work. I mean, if I get caught, then the ring is a surefire way for Lydecker to find out I'm emotionally attached. He'll find Logan, torture him, discover he's Eyes Only and then use him as a way to get me back to Manticore."  
  
" You don't have to wear it to show you're engaged. Just say you are," Jondy shrugged.  
  
Max laughed, " Yeah, he'll believe THAT. Don't forget Jondy, the pulse hasn't really affected Canada. People here can afford to buy engagement rings. Bye you guys," Max said to Alex and Zach.  
  
The second Jondy and Max stepped foot in the coffee shop, Chris approached them. " Morning ladies," Chris grinned flirtatiously. " Hello Kate," he said a little too closely to her ear. Kate was Max's alias while she was in Canada.  
  
Max was about to backhand Chris when Jondy whispered, " Be nice. We gotta stay low key."  
  
Max gritted her teeth. " Good morning," she replied.   
  
Chris smirked and answered, " Well, well, well, it's about time you showed interest in me honey. How about you and me in the back room during lunch hour?"   
  
Max whirled around, " All I said was good morning because I happen to be in a very good mood today since I talked to my *fiancé* last night."  
  
" Well, baby," Chris leaned in closer, " Most engaged women have a ring to show that they're spoken for. Unless my eyes are ripped out of their sockets-"  
  
" I can arrange that," Max growled.  
  
Chris merely gave her a smile and continued, " I happen to NOT see a ring on that beautiful ring finger of yours, so therefore, I've come to the conclusion that either you're lying or your boyfriend is just cheap," He raised an eyebrow. " But hey, my offer for the backroom still stands," he winked at her and moved away to serve customers.  
  
Max lunged at him and would have beaten the shit out of him, but Jondy held her back. " Max," she said in a warning tone.  
  
" He insulted me! He thinks I'm some whore who'll just kick it with him!" Max raged. She struggled to break free from her sister's hold on her, but held on firmly.  
  
" Max, stay calm. Think about Logan. His eyes, his voice, his kiss, whatever. Keep your mind off of Chris and onto Logan. We got customers to serve."  
  
Max took a few deep breaths to calm herself down and she sighed, " Ok. I'm ready."  
  
" Good," Jondy smiled at her.  
  
" How may I help you?" Max asked the next customer.  
  
The woman whipped off her sunglasses and replied, " Yeah, I'd like 3 grande café lattes; 2 tall iced coffee frappucinos and 4 coffees, 2 venti black, 1 grande with non-fat milk and decaf, 1 venti decaf."  
  
Max groaned inwardly. This was going to be a long day.  
  
****  
  
Max's cell phone rang during her lunch break and she answered it breathlessly, " Hello?"  
  
" Hey baby. Why are you out of breath?"  
  
" Hi. Morning rush just passed." Max balanced the phone on one shoulder and washed her hands.  
  
" Must have sucked."  
  
" Very much so. Remember that guy Chris, that I told you about?"  
  
" Yeah. The one that keeps hitting on you," Logan frowned.  
  
" Right. It's taking all I got in me to keep from snapping his scrawny little neck." Max went outside to take a walk and to clear her head.  
  
Logan laughed. " Max, baby, remember, ya gotta keep a low profile."  
  
" I know; that's what Jondy keeps on telling me. Think you can come up here and defend my honor?" Max teased.  
  
" I tried that once and as I recall, it didn't work out too well."  
  
Max chuckled. " I thought it was adorable. You trying to protect a bio-engineered superwoman."  
  
" Ok, we can stop picking on poor defenseless Logan now."  
  
" You're far from defenseless. So how's having the apartment to yourself once again? Valerie's gone, right?"  
  
" Um, actually Max, that's what I called to tell you about."  
  
Max stopped walking around. " That bitch is *still* there?" she said in a low, dangerous tone.  
  
" Max, I swear, one more week, she'll definitely be out of here."  
  
" That's what you said last time," Max said bitterly.  
  
" Max, you know I love you. You got nothing to worry about. I've been phoning you everyday, haven't I?"  
  
" I'm not saying you're cheating on me. I never said that. I just don't trust Valerie and the sooner she's out of there, the easier I'll breathe."  
  
" Well, I got something that'll make you breathe easier. Guess what it is."  
  
" Let's see… the Valerie thing was all a hoax, which, by the way, if it was, I'll come back and drop kick your ass all the way to China."  
  
" Nope."  
  
" You're coming up here and we're going to make love all night long," Max said seductively.  
  
" I would love that more than anything, but you're wrong."  
  
" Zach likes you?"  
  
" Honey, I don't think that's ever going to be possible."  
  
Max laughed. " Well, you know it's something that'll make me breathe easier!! Ok, tell me, I'm through with guessing."  
  
" The search is called off." Logan heard something fall and he asked, " Max? You ok?"  
  
A moment later, Max's voice came back on the line. " Yeah, I'm ok, sorry, I just dropped the phone. I can come back home now?" She asked with disbelief.  
  
Logan laughed. " You dropped the phone?"  
  
" Yes. Now answer me! Can I come home now?"  
  
Logan smiled at her impatience. " You gotta give me a week Max, just so I can find out the reason why they called the search off and to make sure the coast is clear for you guys. I don't want you running into any danger."  
  
" This is great! I never would've thought Lydecker would call off a search after only a month!!" Max was suddenly assaulted with a thought //Why DID Lydecker call off the search so soon?// She quickly shook that thought away, concentrating on being home and in Logan's arms once again.  
  
****  
  
A/N: Yes I know, more boring crap, but I swear, it'll get more exciting soon. In the mean time, PLEASE, read and review!  



	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6 **

Disclaimer: I don't own Dark Angel. If I did, the show would be a hell lot more shippery and smutty. 

Spoilers: Minor ones for all up to 'Hit A Sista Back'. And let's pretend that Max's transfusion cured Logan with no side effects, ok? Also, nothing after HASB happened :-) 

Author's Notes: I know I've been horrible with updates, even though I said that I should be updating more often now (note the "should"). But things have been a little crazy lately, so I never had the sufficient amount of time to sit down and type this up. Please forgive me!!   
As always, a million and one thanks to lareina_Selena and PreciousJax! 

**** 

" Alex?" Max called out. She fine-tuned her hearing to detect any movement or sounds in the house, but there was nothing. She cursed under her breath. " Dammit, she's not home yet!" 

Jondy grinned at her disappointment. " Max, Alex will be home soon. Why don't you go take a shower first?" she offered. 

" Thanks. I feel so disgusting; Chris kept giving my body a once over all day!" Max shuddered at the thought and headed into the bathroom. 

Alex chose that particular moment to come home. " Hey Jondy. Where's Max?" 

" In the shower, washing off the grime caused by that sleazebag Chris," she quipped. 

" Seems like that's all she's been doing lately," Alex joked. 

" Wanna know the latest thing that happened?" 

" Very much so." 

Jondy relayed the story play by play, missing no detail. Just as she finished, Max emerged from the bathroom. " Ok, I am now officially clean, if that's even possible after the day I've had," she declared. Catching sight of Alex, she stopped in her tracks. " Alex, you're home!" she exclaimed. 

" Yes I am!" Alex exclaimed with mock enthusiasm. 

" Guess what?" She said excitedly. 

" What?" 

" No, seriously, guess!" 

Alex stared blandly. " Maxie, honey, I worked for 10 hours straight. I don't have your shark DNA, so I DO need sleep. I am NOT in the mood for guessing games." 

" Someone's grumpy," Max commented. 

" Sorry," Alex apologized. " Rough day at work. What's the news?" 

" We're going home." 

**** 

" Hello?" Val asked. It was the first time she answered the phone since she stayed at Logan's place; he was usually home to answer it. 

" Uh, hi," Max's voice floated through the receiver. " Is Logan there?" 

" No, actually, he's not. May I ask who's calling?" 

" It's Max," she answered, giving Alex a puzzled look. 

" Logan's not home?" Alex whispered. " That's weird, he usually is- especially when he thinks you might call." 

" Oh, hi Max," Valerie said with a slight frown. " May I take a message?" 

" No, that's ok, I'll just phone his cell. Thanks though." 

Max was about to hang up when Valerie's voice intercepted her. " Actually, Logan has requested that no one call his cell phone." 

" Really?" Max asked in a surprised tone. " Well, I doubt he'd really mind. Do you know where he went?" 

" He went to this gourmet store. Said he wanted to buy some things for dinner," Valerie said smoothly, hoping Max would assume she meant it would be for that night. 

Obviously, it worked because Max's next line was, " A gourmet store? For your dinner?" 

" Yeah. He said he had some surprise planned. He even got these really expensive candles." 

" He what?" Max asked, fighting to keep her voice calm but failing miserably. 

Noticing her discomfort, Valerie let a smug smile cross her face. " He got them for dinner. We used those candles last night too and it really creates a romantic glow." 

" Um- well- Valerie, I have to go now. Tell Logan I called." 

" Will do," Val said just a little too sweetly. 

Max hung up the phone and immediately collapsed on the bed. " Logan's cheating on me," she announced, staring blankly at the ceiling. 

"WHAT?" Alex exclaimed, startled. "Logan would never do that!" she insisted, dropping onto the bed beside Max. 

" He went to a gourmet store to get things for dinner- THEIR dinner," Max told her glumly. " He also got candles, which according to Valerie 'created a romantic glow'. I heard it straight from her mouth." 

Alex snorted in disbelief. " You're trusting VALERIE on this? The biggest bitch and liar in the world? Max, you told me yourself, you don't trust Val, what makes you believe her this time?" 

Max gave a weak chuckle. " Yeah, you got a good point Alex." 

Alex gave a triumphant smile. " Of course I do! Besides, why in the WORLD would you even believe Logan would cheat on you?? He loves and adores you and worships the ground you walk on!" 

Max shrugged. " Maybe because I've been away from him for so long." 

" Oh Max," Alex said softly. " You really miss him don't you?" 

" Yeah," she nodded miserably. " I can't stand the fact that I'm so far away from him and Valerie's so close to him." 

" Max, you gotta believe me, Logan would never, ever, ever, in a million years, cheat on you. You two are soul mates for crying out loud! I have never seen him as happy as he is now. You're his ray of light. Now," she changed her voice into an authoritative tone, " You march that butt of yours over to that phone and call that brother of mine!" 

Max gave a small laugh and a mock salute. " Yes ma'am!" 

**** 

A/N: Next chapter will probably be about the phone conversation… so until then, read and review!! 


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Disclaimer: Don't own them and never will. 

Spoilers: Minor ones for all up to 'Hit a Sista back'. And since this is MY fic, therefore, MY own little imaginary world, Logan can walk :D 

**Lareina_Selena and PreciousJax **: You two are the most kick-ass betas a girl can have! Thank you so much for being so honest with me and pointing out all my mistakes; the fanfic world could definitely use more betas like you! 

**** 

Logan frowned when he heard his phone ring. //**_I thought I told Val I didn't want any calls_**// He answered his phone somewhat reluctantly. //_**After all, it could be important**_// 

" Hello?" 

" Hey baby." 

//_**I was right, it WAS important**_// Logan gave a broad smile, " Hey Max. What's up? I just talked to you this morning." 

" I wanted to hear your voice again." She paused for a second and then added, "I can't wait to come back." 

" I can't wait either." 

" Tell him!" Alex mouthed to Max. " He needs to know just how much of a bitch Val is!" 

Max shot a 'be quiet' look at Alex and turned her attention back to her phone call. " So, where are you right now? I called your place and Valerie picked up." 

" Oh, I'm just picking up a few things for dinner." 

" I miss your culinary masterpieces." 

Logan smiled. " Always thinking about your stomach," he teased. 

" It's not like I can help it," Max retorted. Alex shot her yet another 'tell him' look, more insistently, and Max gave in. " So, have you been whipping up any culinary masterpieces lately?" 

" Not quite as often as before; only once in a while. Val's been doing most of the cooking lately, I've been working a lot on finding out why Lydecker called off the search so quickly." 

" Oh. So you're picking up some stuff for your dinner tonight?" //_**Oh God, if you truly exist, make him say no, make him say no**_// Max silently prayed. 

" Not for tonight's dinner, I'm not." 

Max's sigh of relief, quiet as it was, was picked up by Logan at the other end of the phone. 

" And why do you sound so relieved?" Logan asked, a small smile playing on his lips. 

Max considered denying it, but knew there would be no point, especially to Logan of all people. He just knew her too well. 

" Oh, I don't know," Max said sarcastically. " Maybe because Valerie claimed you two had a romantic candlelit dinner?" 

Logan laughed. " You're not jealous, by any chance, are you?" 

" Hell no!" Max exclaimed, denying her true feelings. " It's just… well, I thought they would be reserved for me," she admitted. 

" They are," Logan smiled. " You want to know the truth?" 

" Well, if you don't tell me the truth, you'd be telling me a lie, so yes, please tell me the truth," Max snapped, her tough-ass attitude returning. 

" I'm at the gourmet store, picking up a few things for when you come home. Last night when I came home from meeting with Matt Sung, Val already had the candles out and lit, but I put them away. You've got nothing to worry about." 

" Well, it's good to know that not ALL men are scum, as Original Cindy likes to think," Max teased. 

Logan chuckled. " So now that your ego has been soothed, can you put Alex on?" 

" Fine, if you'd rather talk to your sister," Max sighed dramatically. " Hold on," Max handed the phone to Alex. 

" Hey Logan," Alex's voice came across the receiver. 

" Hey Lexie. Max told you that you could come home already, right?" 

" Uh huh," Alex answered, flipping through a magazine mindlessly. She paused when she saw an ad for a wedding dress company and that triggered a thought. She smiled and mentioned casually, " You know, you two should start planning the wedding." 

" Oh dear Lord in heavens," Logan groaned. " You know, I think you ladies are more than capable of handling all the arrangements…" 

" Not a chance in hell Logan," Alex grinned. " Come on, it'll be fun. For instance, I'm thinking a June wedding would be perfect for you two…" 

**** 

A/N: All right, here's your Christmas present guys!!!! I know it's better to give than receive, but hey, I wouldn't mind some reviews in return as a Christmas present ;-) Happy Holidays everyone!! 


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**: 

**Disclaimer**: Don't own them and never will. 

**Spoilers**: Minor ones for all up to 'Hit a Sista back'. And since this is MY fic, therefore, MY own little imaginary world, Logan can walk. 

**Author's Note**: Aiight guys, I'm finally posting this, although I doubt that even a handful of you read this. I wrote this chapter AGES ago, like, around November or something'. I've lost some interest in writing fan fic, but since I've got this written up to Chapter 11 and I've planned out the entire fic, you can bet I'll finish it. 

****

Immediately after they hung up with Logan, Max diverted her attention to Alex. " Alex, as much as Logan and I adore you, you're walking a thin line here." 

" Doesn't matter. I got cat DNA. Excellent balance is in the genes," Alex smirked. 

" Don't remind me," Max rolled her eyes. " Besides, you know it's a figure of speech. Logan and I don't want the wedding to be rushed and so soon. We'll be perfectly happy to wait a year or so." 

" A year? Are you crazy?" Alex exclaimed. " How can you be certain you two even have a year left? You were always the one who taught me we should live life to it's fullest while we can. Look," she said in a calmer voice when she saw the look of surprise on Max's face. " A lot can happen in one year. You could get re-captured or get a seizure that kills you. Wouldn't you at least want to be married to the man you love and adore in case all that does happen?" 

" Marriage is just a formality and produces a tiny little certificate stating you're legally bound to that person till the day you die or like so many other couples, till your divorce," she joked, trying to rile a smile out of Alex. When Alex didn't twitch so much as a muscle, Max sighed and continued. " Some couples marry to prove their love, but Logan and I already love and cherish one another. I can guarantee you I'll become Mrs. Logan Cale, whether it's legal or not." 

Alex took a moment to register all this and then grinned. " So you're going to take Logan's last name? You're going to become Max Cale?" 

Max smiled back, " I think it's the greatest name there is." 

**** 

Logan walked into his apartment with an armful of groceries to the smell of filet mignon cooking. He frowned slightly, remembering what Max had said about Val. 

Val emerged from the kitchen and smiled at Logan. " I thought I heard someone come in. Dinner's almost ready." 

//_This reminds me a little too much about me and Val's marriage except she's not drunk_// Logan thought as he put away the food he had bought. " Val, have you had any luck with your job search?" 

" Not yet," Val replied as she put the finishing touches on their meal, " I should find one pretty soon though." 

//_That's what she said last time. And the time before that. And the time before that too, come to think of it_// 

" Val, you know that no matter what happens, you're going to have to leave by the end of the week," Logan said firmly. 

Val stopped what she was doing. " But what if I can't find a job?" 

Logan gave a hollow laugh. " Right now Val, I don't even know if you've even been trying to find a job. You're around all day, either reading or watching TV. Can you be honest with me? Why are you still here?" 

Val strode seductively over to Logan and stopped only when a few inches were between them. " Because I still love you Logan. I want you back." That's when she leaned in and kissed him. Hard. Passionately. Open mouthed. 

Logan was too stunned by the kiss to do anything except stand there for a few seconds. Then his brain started processing what was happening and he pushed Val away. " Val!" he exclaimed, " What the hell are you doing?" 

" I told you Logan," she purred, moving ever closer. " I want you back. I want to become Valerie Cale once again." 

" Val. I'm engaged and very much in love with Max. I have absolutely no feelings nor interest in you. In fact, I think it would be best if you left. Right now." 

" Look me in the eye and tell me you don't love me," Val challenged him. 

Logan looked her coldly in the eye and said slowly, " I. Don't. Love. You." 

Valerie glared at him for a few seconds. " Fine. I'll be back tomorrow to pick my stuff up." 

" Great," Logan said with a sigh of relief, raking his fingers through his hair. 

Valerie was already out the door when she turned around and faced Logan. " I'll have you know Logan Cale," Valerie narrowed her eyes at Logan. " You don't know what you'll be missing. Our sex life was amazing." 

" That was all it was, sex. Pure animalistic, physical sex," Logan said with a hard voice. " Max and I have the emotional thing going on and that's what makes making love a million times better." With that, he slammed the door in her face. 

****

" Jondy, is it just me or is it hot in here?" Max asked as she took off her jacket. 

Jondy stared at Max curiously. " It's not that hot in here Maxie. " In fact, I find that it's a bit cold." 

" You feeling ok Max? You look really flushed," Alex said, putting a hand on Max's forehead. " You sick?" 

" We don't get sick," Zach said absentmindedly, absorbed in his book. " It's in the genes." 

Something dawned upon Alex and she asked Max worriedly, " Max, when was the last time you were in heat?" 


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

**Disclaimer and Spoilers**: Same as previous chapters 

**Author's Note**: Thank you all so much for reviewing!! It's nice to know people are still hanging in there. Mucho gracias to my fantastic beta, lareinaSelena!! You rock girl!! 

****

Max shrugged, " 3 months ago? Give or take a month." 

As the impact of her statement dawned on her, she looked over at Alex. " You don't think...?" 

" Zach," Alex said, reached out to grab his arm, her gaze never leaving Max's. " Sniff the air." 

Zach took a deep breath, his heightened senses working to locate pheromones in the air. The look that came over his face was all the confirmation they needed. " Oh God," Max whimpered. 

" It's okay," Jondy said, quickly, biting her lip. Jumping to her feet, she began to pace. " Alex, you and I will stay up tonight, keep Max company." 

//_And to make sure she won't do something she'll regret_// Alex thought to herself. 

" Zach, lock yourself in your room and don't come out until tomorrow morning when either Alex or I call you, ok?" Jondy directed, turning to Zach with pleading eyes. 

Zach nodded slowly. Moving very deliberately, he got up and walked to his room. 

" Max, first thing in the morning, we'll phone Dave and see if we can get you the day off with one of us, ok?" Jondy was quickly and effectively taking control of the situation. 

Max curled up in a ball and nodded miserably. //_I hate this. I hate how completely out of control I become. I hate how horny I get, craving sex with every guy I see. I despise how that if I'm not careful or being watched every single second I might end up in some strange guy's bed in the morning. Thank heavens THAT has never happened before. Sweaty gropes in the corner of some bar, pushed up against the wall making out, but never jumping in bed with some guy I don't even know the name of. I can thank my boo for that._// 

Alex noticed how miserable Max was getting by the second. " Max?" Alex asked gently, sitting down next to her big sister. " You ok hun?" 

Max wiped away a single tear that had fallen from her eye. " I hate it," she whispered. " I hate how I lose control over my own body. And what for? I have to go through this because my fucked up genes decide that every 4 months, I have to scratch an itch. It seems like as soon as one ends, another begins. I detest Manticore for making me who I am. I'm supposed to be a soldier, but I can't even control my sexual urges. I hate this," Max stated, her pain clearly visible. 

" We know how you feel Maxie," Jondy said softly, sitting on the other side of Max. " We can beat this bitch together." 

Max gave a sad smile and hugged her sisters. " I'm so glad I got you two with me right now." 

" Us too," Alex replied. 

**** 

With Val now out of the way, Logan went back to concentrating on finding out just why the search for Max had been called off. But even with Val gone, all Logan could think of was the kiss. 

//_Why in the world did she kiss me? She knows Cale Industries has gone out of business. I still got the trust fund mom left me; after all, Eyes Only can't exist without back-up funding. But Val never knew about the trust fund. I didn't even know of it while we were married. I found out afterwards. Only Max, Bling and Alex knew about it. So if Val didn't know about the money, what was in for her if we got back together? She couldn't possibly care for me, she cheated on me, lied to me and used me during our entire relationship. So why did she kiss me?_// He quickly shook that thought off and got back to work, feeling slightly guilty of even thinking of that kiss with Val. 

****

" Dave, you have GOT to let Kate take the day off!" Jondy exclaimed. 

" Lily, I told you already, I don't CARE how incredibly ill you claim she is! Kate seemed perfectly healthy yesterday and she is coming in today no matter what. We're already short handed as it is and we can't afford to have another person off!" 

" But Dave-" 

" No buts! Kate comes in today or it'll cost BOTH of your jobs!" Dave snapped. 

" We leave in less than a week," Alex whispered to Jondy. " Do we need the money that badly?" Alex had been listening to the entire conversation, thanks to her super hearing. 

Jondy covered the receiver. " Yeah. We need to pay off the rent on this place, have enough money for a few more meals and to get back." 

" Why don't we just work our cat burglar skills?" Alex suggested quietly. 

Jondy shot her a look, " Because the reason why we're here is to stay unnoticed!!" 

" Jondy," Max spoke up, " Tell the bastard I'll be in. You got my back, right?" 

Jondy nodded. " Fine, we'll be there," she told Dave, making no attempt to hide her aggravation. 

" Good." With that, Dave slammed the phone down. //_Kids these days_// He thought wryly to himself. 

****

" Argh! I don't WANT to play another game of I Spy!" Max exclaimed, jumping up and pacing around. She had gone through the entire day so far without anything happening, but just barely, all thanks to Jondy. Every time Jondy sensed Max was gong to the Dark Side, she found some way to distract her. 

" Well, what do you suggest us doing Maxie?" Jondy asked tiredly. She had been looking out for Max the entire day and it was beginning to wear her down. " We've already played 20 Questions, I Never, Scrabble, Snakes and Ladders and Pictionary." 

" All of which you've managed to knock up to an R rating," Alex chimed in. " I'll never be able to look at Pictionary the same way ever again," she sighed dramatically. 

Hours later, they were watching a movie at home and Jondy and Alex made the mistake of dozing off at the same time, each thinking the other was awake and watching Max. 

Seeing that Jondy and Alex had fallen asleep, Max grabbed the car keys off of the coffee table and seized this opportunity to sneak out of the house in search of some action. 

****

Max drove around aimlessly; trying to decide where the best place would be for her to do some much needed scratching. When she passed by Starbucks and saw Chris emerging from the coffee shop, she lost all control and pulled the car into reverse. 

Chris noticed Max's car stopping near him and he grinned sleazily, sauntering over. " My, my, imagine seeing you here at this hour Kate," he purred. " Must have wanted some of this, huh?" 

The scent of a male so close to her right now was intoxicating. " Get in the back," she said, tipping her head in that direction. 

" Whatever you want baby," he answered in a seductive growl. 

****


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Yes, I know it's taken me quite a while; I haven't fallen ill with some mysterious disease, I haven't gone on vacation, I've just been busy. Please bear with me, the next update may not be for a while.  
  
* * * *  
  
Jondy paced around. " Alex, how could we have BOTH fallen asleep? Especially me! I was designed to not even NEED sleep!"  
  
" Jondy, chill. Max probably went out for a run. Stop worrying." Zach said in the calmest voice possible.  
  
" And stop pacing around. You're making me dizzy," Alex added, "Calm down."  
  
Jondy stopped and turned to face Alex, fire burning in her eyes. "Our SISTER is out there, in heat and all by herself. How do you expect me to CALM DOWN?  
  
" Jondy, keep your emotions in check," Zach snapped. " How can you concentrate with your head that clouded over?"  
  
" Yeah Jond," Alex agreed. " Take a few deep breaths and sit down. Worrying and losing your cool isn't going to bring Max back any sooner."  
  
" Jondy, I have faith in Max; I don't think she went out to look for some stranger to screw, but since she is in heat, anything's possible. If it'll make you feel any better, I'll go out and look for her, ok?" Zach offered.  
  
Jondy nodded, " Yeah. Thanks," she answered, finally sitting down.  
  
" No problem," Zach replied as he walked out the door. As soon as Zach left, Jondy bounced up again and resumed her pacing.  
  
" Oh God, what if Max DID go and have sex with a total stranger?" Jondy bit her lip nervously. " Logan would kill us!"  
  
A quick flash of worry passed Alex's eyes, but a calm exterior soon replaced that. " Don't worry," she said in as soothing a voice as she could manage. " Cindy told me Max had been a virgin until her and Logan's first time. If she went for almost 8 years without sex while she was in heat, she can certainly handle this time," Alex said logically.  
  
Jondy began wringing her hands. " Ok. Maybe she did remain a virgin. But what if once she got a sense of what sex was really like, she'll want it even more during her heat cycles?"  
  
Alex opened her mouth but shut it when nothing came out. She did that several times and finally just shrugged. A concerned look fell on her delicate features and for once, Alex had rendered speechless.  
  
* * * *  
  
Logan growled at his computer out of frustration. The security in the Manticore database had been upped recently and there were a million and one firewalls to get through before reaching the mainframe.  
  
" Ok, one last time," Logan promised himself, " then I'm taking a break." He took off his glasses and rubbed his tired eyes; if he wasn't so eager to get Max home safe and sound, he wouldn't have spent almost 20 hours straight at breaking in. He replaced his glasses on the crook of his nose and tried again.  
  
" Denied." The word flashed across the screen. //Ok, ok, one LAST time, then I really will stop//  
  
Logan tried once more and to his surprise, he finally got through. " Yes!" he grinned at his small victory. Once inside, he discovered security was next to nothing, only passwords, and by now Logan was a pro at cracking them. All he had to do was pop a disk in and let it do all the work for him. While the generator was working, he got up, stretched the kinks out of his back and waited.  
  
The second the password was revealed, Logan went straight for the section "X-5 recapture". He went through the X-5's latest known locations and changed a detail here and there; but not before saving himself a copy. When Max got back, she could have the X-5 reunion she so desperately wanted.  
  
When he got to Max's name, he clicked on it for the full report, instead of the short summary listed there. He went to the most recent date and what he found made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.  
  
* * * * A/N: I know I've been evil for waiting this long to update, but indulge me and leave me some reviews ( 


	11. Chapter 11

Max snuck into the house as quietly as she possibly could for her to go unnoticed. But there was no such luck. Alex and Jondy had been much too worried about her to go back to sleep.  
  
¡§ Oh thank goodness,¡¨ Jondy sighed with relief. ¡§ Max, where in the world have you been?¡¨ She asked, embracing her in a hug.  
  
¡§Max, do you know how worried we were?¡¨ Alex exclaimed. ¡§ You¡¦re in heat, for crying out loud, what the hell were you thinking? What¡¦s Logan going to think?¡¨ Always the blunt one, Alex got straight to the point, ¡§ Did you sleep with some guy?¡¨  
  
Jondy shot Alex a silencing glare. They had agreed earlier on that there would be no questions asked; not until Max was ready to talk.  
  
Max bit her lip and tears filled her eyes. ¡§ I¡¦m taking a shower,¡¨ she said, her voice trembling slightly.  
  
Jondy just nodded and Max headed to her room to get some clean clothes.  
  
Just then, Max¡¦s cell phone rang. Alex picked it up from the coffee table and answered it wearily.  
  
¡§Alex?¡¨ Logan asked anxiously. ¡§ Is Max there? I need to talk to her. It¡¦s really important.¡¨  
  
¡§ Yeah, sure,¡¨ Alex said, hoping that talking to Logan would make Max feel better. She covered up the mouthpiece and said to Max as she was walking into the bathroom. ¡§ Max, it¡¦s Logan.¡¨  
  
Max ignored her and slammed the bathroom door behind her. Water ran instantly, but it did nothing to hide the heart breaking sobs that had ensued.  
  
¡§ Alex? What¡¦s the matter?¡¨ Logan asked, unable to conceal the worry in his voice.  
  
¡§ Uh oh,¡¨ Jondy muttered, grabbing the phone from Alex. ¡§ Max is unavailable at the moment,¡¨ she told Logan.  
  
¡§ Why? What happened? Jondy, what aren¡¦t you telling me?¡¨ When Jondy refused to respond, Logan slammed his fist onto his desk. ¡§ Damn it Jondy, I¡¦ve got a right to know if something happened to Max!¡¨  
  
All Logan heard in response was the distinctive click of a disconnecting call.  
  
Logan stared at the cell phone in his hand with disbelief. //What aren¡¦t they telling me? God, I know it concerns Max and it¡¦s driving me nuts//  
  
****  
  
A/N: I'm terribly sorry for this tiny little smidget of a chapter, but it's the best I can do for now. Since DA's unfortunate demise, I've slowly been losing interest in my little fanfic (I've almost forgotten the details to my own story) and honestly, I have no idea when it'll be the last time I update. Hopefully I will be able to get my act together and actually sit down and write so that the ending could bring satisfaction to all of you! Thank you so much for the encouraging reviews you guys have left me, I hope you continue. 


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